Christian Chefs Newsletter
May 15, 1999

OUTLINE:
           Introduction
           Christianity in the Kitchen - All Prayed Up?
           Learning Subject of the Month - Seasoning Your Food
           Recipe Contests --NEW--
           Featured Recipe - Baptist Church-Fried Chicken Wings
           Recent Job Listings - 4 New
           Featured Website - Bibles.net

As mentioned last month, due to popular demand, we've started a new section of the newsletter for Recipe Contests. We will also be eventually opening a "Recipe Contests" section on our website. We would love to keep this running, helping our brothers and sisters in Christ. To that end, we would certainly appreciate it if you would contact us by e-mail if you know of any decent recipe contests that professional cooks and chefs are allowed to compete in.

(Please read Psalm 18: 1-3 first.)

How was I able to walk into a maximum security situation, as a female, and work alone with thirty-eight or more male inmates wielding knives? Or, how, during all those twenty-four years, was I able to cope, dealing with difficult camp directors, teenage workers, and double shifts? How can we be prepared as the Lord's servants to go into these kinds of situations and get our job done to His glory and still maintain our Christian integrity? How can we continue to do this year after year?

PRAYER! My dear Christian brethren! ROMANS 13:14 "CLOTHE YOURSELVES WITH THE LORD JESUS CHRIST." How can we do that? Consider Psalm 40:1-3: (This is one of my favorite Psalms passages.) "I waited patiently for the Lord to help me, and he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the pit of despair, out of the mud and the mire. He set my feet on solid ground and steadied me as I walked along. He has given me a new song to sing, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see what he has done and be astounded. They will put their trust in the Lord." New Living Translation

After a brief quiet time at home, I would head for work. I always put praise music on in my car as I drove to work. This set my spirit in a worship mode. I would sing and worship my Lord as I drove along. Passing folks who saw me may have thought I had gone wacky, but that is OK. :-)

Then I would ask the Lord to guide my walk and talk, and to give me creative ways to share His love as I do my job as unto Him. You would not believe the ways the Lord can use you if you walk through the door "all prayed up" as the saying goes.

Then, how do you maintain this constant attitude of prayer throughout your stressful shift? Ephesians 6:18 "Pray at all times and on every occasion in the power of the Holy Spirit. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all Christians everywhere." Also consider Luke 18:1 "One day Jesus told his disciples a story to illustrate their need for constant prayer and to show them that they must never give up."

I can witness to many times how the Lord would stretch food when unexpected people would arrive at mealtime. I have seen instances where a serious burn situation "mysteriously" became a minor inconvenience instead of a serious burn. I have been in the middle of a jail riot and had inmates circle me to protect me from harm. Who put them there? Our Lord! I have had two bobtail Sheriff's food trucks burn up under me. Why was I safe and my load delivered still frozen? The Lord rode with me! I was "all prayed up." I remember many times as a camp cook, leaving the kitchen late at night when the camp is quiet, meeting a bear on the way back to my quarters. I would just thank the Lord, out loud, for sending this nice surprise my way. The bear would hear me and wander off, leaving me in peace.

So, my dear brethren, be encouraged. We work in a very difficult field of employment BUT our Lord is Lord of all and can make this the most wonderful and fruitful ministry you can imagine if you will just depend on Jesus for your strength, wisdom, and protection.

Go in peace, dear ones, my prayers go with you!

Diane Boone
Retired Sheriff, Camp, and Prison Cook

If God is speaking to your heart about these things, and you need somebody to talk with, or if you have any specific prayer requests, please don't hesitate to e-mail us about your need and somebody from the fellowship will contact you as soon as possible.

Whether in menu planning or trying to answer the common question of "What's for Dinner?" you need to consider what herbs and spices are going to mix well with the dishes you plan to prepare. It's at this point in cooking where the most mistakes are made, for the sole reason of seasoning is not to kill the taste of the food but rather to ENHANCE the natural flavors of the food you're working with. In some restaurants, it may be desirable to "kill the taste" of food that's not all that great, but if that's the case, it's time to do one of three things: 1) Get better quality food; 2) Change the menu; or if this is happening too frequently, in extreme cases 3) Get a new job. This concept (ENHANCING flavors) is applicable in much more than just herbs and spices. For example, have you ever eaten a dessert that looked great, but had so much liqueur that you couldn't taste anything else? How about some pasta saturated in salt? Or maybe even fish that all you could taste was saffron? Seasonings are absolutely fabulous, but using the wrong seasonings or using the right ones to excess can make a meal outright repulsive. The proper and knowledgeable use of seasonings can be the big difference between people savoring the best meal they've ever had or their having eaten just another everyday meal. The choice is yours.

The first decision you will make when choosing flavoring matches for your food is whether to use fresh or dried herbs. Fresh will generally add a better flavor to the dish being prepared, but time and care will need to be given to get the freshest herbs available. Additionally, in order to get the greatest flavors, one must chop the herbs as close to serving time as possible. Dry herbs, on the other hand, are very convenient, for all that needs to be done is to sprinkle some of the flakes on the food. However, dried herbs are very often stored improperly, which adds to flavor loss. Heat and oxygen are the most common causes for this. Most often heat is the culprit deteriorating the dried herbs because many people keep these herbs stored right over the stove. Or oxygen has robbed the herbs of flavor because of how long it has taken to use an entire container of the herb. For example, how long has it been since you first opened that container of dried oregano at home? If you don't remember, and notice that it now has a musty or "flat" aroma to it, you may want to consider replacing it. Within the professional kitchens, it's very tempting for a chef to buy a gallon-size container of each dried herb, even though it will take numerous months to use it up. A chef should buy only the amount of dried herbs that can be used within two or three months, and then take care to store them away from heat.

The most popular seasonings in the world are the two that are on just about every dining room table in the world: salt and pepper. Salt does more than just add an additional flavor to the mix. It works to unite, balance, and deepen the natural flavors of the dish. As with any other ingredient, the use of salt can help create a dish that is fabulous or it can make it into a culinary disaster.

Many inexperienced cooks don't have the education or experience required to be able to properly flavor and season their foods. Therefore, we've provided some "Seasoning Recommendations" charts within CCF's website (link below), covering popular matches to many herbs and spices that are frequently used to enhance the flavors of food. The charts, however, should only be used as reference until experience can take over, because, as we all know, there is only so much you can learn from a written chart. Our hope is that the charts will allow inexperienced cooks and chefs a starting point in gaining their experience. AND give others a general reference point for expanding their personal knowledge of ingredient matches. Have fun and don't hesitate to experiment!

Seasoning Recommendations Chart:
/charts/seasoning.html

By Ira Krizo

Being that we have members from all walks of the food-service industry we're now giving the option for anybody to e-mail CCF with any questions you may have about this article as well as other food or faith-related questions.

SOUTHERN LIVING HOLIDAY RECIPE CONTEST
WEB SITE:
http://southernliving.com/events/recipecontest/index.html
PRIZES: $1000 in each category.
DEADLINE: May 17
INFO: Send original recipes that you use during the holidays -- Thanksgiving through New Year's for 5 categories: soup or starter, vegetable side dish, one-dish entree, cake or pie, family favorite. Enter as many categories as you like.

LAND O' LAKES COOKIE SWAP
WEB SITE: http://www.landolakes.com/GASS/html/CookieSwapEntry.cfm
PRIZES: Ten winners receive $2,500 each.
DEADLINE: May 31
INFO:This contest is all about cookies. Winning original recipes that use at least 1/2 cup Land O' Lakes butter will be published in a Land O' Lakes cookbook. Enter as often as you like.

Yield: 2 Servings (6-10 wings)

Ingredients:
Oil, for deep-frying
1/2 cup/120g Buttermilk
3 tbsp/21g Creole Spice
2 cups/113g Flour
1 lb/450g Chicken Wings
Potato Salad, for serving
Parsley Sprigs, for garnish

Procedure:
In a deep fryer or high-sided skillet, heat oil to 360'F (182'C).

In a mixing bowl, combine buttermilk, 1 tablespoon Creole spice and 1/2 cup flour; mix well to make a paste. Season remaining flour with remaining Creole spice. Dip wings, one at a time, into batter, allowing excess to drip off. Dredge in seasoned flour.

Fry immediately in hot oil, 6 to 8 minutes, moving and turning pieces frequently with long tongs. Drain on paper towels. Do this in batches. If wings are large, remove with tongs, drain, transfer to a baking sheet and bake in a preheated 350'F (177'C) oven until very crispy, about 10 minutes.

Serve with potato salad garnished with parsley sprigs.

Submitted by Scott Brewer

Listed below, and available for your viewing in our website, are the jobs that have been submitted to us this month. A listing of all the current jobs posted with us may be found at the below link. Employers, posting your jobs with us is another FREE service provided by CCF, and the job will be listed in this newsletter and on our website! The below link will also guide you to the form you fill out which will post your jobs to our website.

Go HERE to enter the Employment Opportunities area.

**
Name = Thousand Pines Christian Camp and Conference Center
Location = Crestline, CA
Timeline = Full Time, Year Round
Position = Lead Cook
Responsibilities = Cooking Meals, Supervising
Pay = $6.50-$7.50 Per Hour
Contact:
           Tina Spence (Food Service Manager)
           tpcamp@aol.com (Attn: Tina)
           Phone = (909) 338-8135
           Fax Resume To (909) 338-3511
**
Name = Marmon Valley Farm Camp
Location = Zanesfield, OH
Timeline = Seasonal
Position = Assistant Kitchen Manager
Responsibilities = Oversee meal preparation & clean up, direct other kitchen staff.
Pay = Room & Board + Fixed Salary, or Hourly if offsite.
Contact:
           Steve Olsen
           mvf@logan.net
           7754 St. Rt. 292
           Zanesfield, OH 43360
           Phone = (937) 593-8000
           Fax = (937) 593-6900
           www.marmonvalley.com
**
Name = Awanita Valley Christian Retreat Center
Location = Marietta, SC
Timeline = Full Time - Year Round
Position = Food Service Manager
Responsibilities = Ordering food, paper, and cleaning products; supervising kitchen staff; aiding in meal preparation for 9000 campers/year; aiding in housekeeping
Contact:
           Jerred Roberts
           102 Awanita Camp Road
           Marietta, SC 29661
           awanita@classic.msn.com
**
Name = Pembina Valley Bible Camp
Location = Darlingford, Manitoba, Canada
Timeline = Seasonal June 24 - Aug 24 or parts of it
Position = Head Cook
Responsibilities = Prepare meals for 50 people, supervise 2 assistant cooks
Pay = Volunteer, room and board, can pay for fuel to get here
Other = Evangelical Christian camp. We operate camps for youth going into grades 6 and up. Our camps are 8 - 10 days in length. We have a maximum of 32 campers at a time.
Contact:
           Brent Ankrom
           R.R.#1
           Darlingford, Manitoba
           Canada
           Phone = (204) 246-2008
           pvcamp@mb.sympatico.ca

From their website you can:
READ the entire Bible in many different translations,
LOCATE any verse with an online concordance search,
LOOK UP scripture, cross-references, and commentaries,
ACCESS the original Greek or Hebrew for any verse,
COMPARE King James and revised versions side-by-side,
LEARN about the fascinating history of the English bible,
DOWNLOAD the complete text of several bibles via FTP,
REVIEW classic writings of historic Christianity,
LISTEN to hundreds of hymns in MIDI files,
HEAR any passage of God's word read aloud with Real Audio

www.bibles.net

We apologize for any e-mails that have been returned to you unsent these past couple of weeks from the '…@christianchefs.org' mail server. The server we're using hasn't been properly forwarding our e-mail, but the problem has been corrected and you can continue sending e-mail there. If ever you have problems with this server in the future, which we doubt will happen, you can use our other e-mail address, "ChristChef@aol.com".

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God Bless,
Ira Krizo, Director

Christian Chefs Fellowship
ChristChef@aol.com
http://www.ChristianChefs.org
P.O. Box 608
Crestline, CA 92325-0608
Phone: (909) 338-0876
Fax: (508) 462-1068
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Note: To view our archived newsletters, go HERE

Volunteering Opportunities Available:
           Writers for the newsletter
                      "Christianity in the Kitchen" articles
                      "Learning Subject of the Month" articles
                      Submitting recipes
                      Recommendations for good Christian and culinary websites to feature
                      Other articles (open for suggestions)
           Experienced web programmers and graphic designers
           Representatives to help get our name out
           Director of "Healthy Living" ministry
           Chatroom hosts
           People wanting to start local chapters in their community